At this moment, a memory that happened not long ago... which was not a good memory for Kinoshita Mai, flashed quickly in front of Kinoshita Mai's eyes.

That was a few days ago, at the celebration banquet to celebrate the victory over Genbukan. Seitou and Souji, who were sitting side by side, were talking and laughing, and their behavior was so intimate... While Kinoshita Mai Nao felt strangely uncomfortable, she couldn't help but recall

Although I knew about its existence, I never thought about understanding its "many ways"...

Why are Aoto and Okita-kun here? Are they here to watch the fireworks display together?

Just as these questions filled Kinoshita Mai's mind at an alarming speed, Aomori and Souji in the distance had already walked away, and their figures were lost in the sea of ​​people.

Hesitation, anxiety, confusion...these emotions were mixed together in a different kind of balance and spread across Kinoshita's face.

She hesitated for about 3 seconds——

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang...

Going home or something... I can’t worry about it for the moment!

Kinoshita Mai, who was eager to prove something, turned resolutely, kicked the red clogs under her feet, and chased in the direction where Aoto and Souji disappeared.

Although I walked very fast and in a hurry, there were too many tourists on the road.

The dense flow of people formed walls of people, hindering Kinoshita Mai.

In such an environment, no matter how fast the pace is, it is useless.

After finally arriving at the location where Aomori and Souji were just now...the two of them went to nowhere.

With a blank gaze, Kinoshita Mai looked around at the "people from the crowd" who had no longer seen Aotobu and Kinoshita Mai.

Then, he chewed his teeth thoughtfully,

"Are you going in this direction...?"

While murmuring like this, she turned to the right...

…

…

——Who is that girl?

Sanako and Elodie have never met.

When Sanako saw this little girl walking beside Qingto, wearing a turban on her head and a mask on her face, she felt quite strange.

She didn't remember Qingdeng having a sister of this age.

——Is it a family member of a friend? A distant relative? Or...

Sanako herself didn't notice: her face was slowly becoming weird...

When she came back to her senses, she found that her feet had begun to move forward automatically.

As she chased in the direction where Aoto appeared, she encountered the same situation as Mai Kinoshita - by the time they arrived at the location where Aoto and the girl in yellow were just now, they had gone to nowhere.

Not only did they not find Aoden and the girl in yellow, they also didn't find Kinoshita Mai who was not far away from her - and Kinoshita Mai also didn't find Sanako.

What a coincidence.

Sanako not only had a brush with Aoto like Kinoshita Mai... but her subsequent actions were exactly the same as Kinoshita Mai's.

After only a moment of hesitation, Sanako looked around seriously, hugged the blue yukata in her arms tightly, and turned to the left...

…

…

"Wow... this crowd... Hey, you all have to keep up." Qingden turned to the people behind him and warned, "Be careful not to get scattered."

I don’t know if it’s because today is the last day of the fireworks display, so people who don’t want to leave any regrets this year are all flocking here... Anyway, there are so many people tonight, so many that it’s difficult to move.

You can’t even use “walking” to describe Qingdeng’s march.

It would be more appropriate to say "creep".

If the flow of people in front moves forward a little, they should quickly follow; if the flow of people stops moving, they can only follow and remain motionless.

Just like this, he slowly "wriggled" forward while taking advantage of every opportunity.

If you look down from above, this street... no, this block with Ryogoku Bridge as the center and a radius of several miles is like a huge kaleidoscope.

Tourists wearing colorful and various costumes are the fragments of flowers in this kaleidoscope.

The constantly moving and changing "flower scraps" together form a colorful world that is very different from the current chaotic world.

All the officials of the nearby own division were mobilized.

They carried long sticks and stood on both sides of the street to maintain order.

Thanks to the hard work of these officials, although the fireworks display was crowded, the atmosphere was still orderly and coordinated.

Elodie, who was barely around Qingdeng's waist, could easily be pushed to the ground in such a crowded environment by someone who "didn't notice there was a little guy in front of me."

For the sake of Elodie's safety, Qingdeng pondered for a moment with a thoughtful expression on his face, and then said:

"Elodie, it's easy for you to get knocked down like this, why don't you sit on my shoulder?"

"Hmm? Is that okay?"

"sure."

Elodie, who was worried about whether this behavior of "treating Qingden as a mount" might be too rude, showed hesitation...

At this moment, Souji, who heard the conversation between Qingden and Elodie and noticed the hesitant look on Elodie's face, smiled slightly:

"Elody, you don't need to worry too much about 'etiquette'. Do you think Mr. Orange is the kind of person who cares about the minutiae of etiquette?"

Hearing what the Director-General said, the "fog" covering Elodie's little face gradually dissipated.

"Then...master, I'll trouble you."

Qingden Wan'er:

"Why are you so polite to me?"

After saying this, Qingden stretched out his arms, hugged Elodie's armpits, lifted Elodie over his head like a doll, and let Elodie sit astride him like a horse.

on the neck.

Her gaze suddenly lifted up, and she saw a scenery that she rarely had the opportunity to see on ordinary days - this seemed to make Elodie very happy.

The smile on his face became brighter and brighter, and the excitement in his eyes became more and more dazzling.

And at this moment... Qingdeng had just reminded him to be careful and not to be scattered by the crowd.

result--

…

"Um?"

Hijikata was like a hound that found its prey, his eyes widened suddenly, and his handsome nose twitched hard.

I saw him looking straight at a young woman walking towards him five steps away to his right with unblinking eyes.

This young woman looks to be 18 or 9 years old. She is wearing a pink yukata, her hair is dark and shiny, tied into a Shimada bun, and her delicate features are lightly painted with powder.

This woman didn't have any companions around her, so she was roaming this street alone.

Hijikata stared straight at the woman's slender back as she receded, and then——

"...A Sheng."

"Um?"

After Kondo beside him turned around in confusion at being suddenly called out, Hijikata said to Kondo word by word with a solemn expression as if he was going to do something noble and great.

"You guys go and play slowly first. I'll excuse you for a while."

After saying that, without waiting for Kondo to respond, Hijikata spread his legs and chased after the young woman.

"This lady!"

When she heard someone calling her from behind, the woman paused, then turned around slowly and elegantly.

Judging from the reaction shown by this woman at this moment...she seems to be particularly used to being approached by men on the street.

Her face was calm, her expression was calm, and her slightly raised corners of her mouth conveyed a complacency of "Oh, here comes another fool who is fascinated by my beauty"... But her calm and proud expression,

He only persisted until he saw Hijikata's face.

The moment her eyes touched Hijikata's handsome face, which was completely different from the people around her, the woman's face instantly turned red, and her beautiful peach blossom eyes were rippling and soft.

"Miss." Hijikata showed a very clean and hearty smile, "Are you alone?"

"Vegetarian, vegetarian... (yes)" The woman who accidentally ate a screw due to nervousness bowed her head shyly and hurriedly pushed back a few strands of hair hanging near her ears.

…

"Um?"

Harada raised his head suddenly and twitched his nose like a dog.

"What a delicious smell...where is it?! Where is the smell coming from?!"
To be continued...